Healthcare continues to evolve for many reasons. There is no doubt that the pandemic changed how frontline healthcare workers interacted and stayed connected with patients. They necessarily had to change their business model rapidly and on the fly. But since that time, the solutions implemented for the short term have been honed and fine-tuned. And although in-person visits have largely resumed, many of these procedures are being retained and utilized. The silver lining of the pandemic seems to be that new, more efficient ways of operating were identified and are here to stay. Microsoft 365 is playing a large role in this healthcare development.
Technology utilized to support frontline healthcare workers has been growing month to month. In fact, the usage of Microsoft Teams and Microsoft 365 has increased by over 560 percent in the last 18 months.
Microsoft has committed its support to front-line healthcare workers via 365 and Teams, designing products to improve their workflow and make processes more intuitive for their patients.
Facilitating Virtual Appointments
Virtual appointments became wildly popular during the pandemic for obvious reasons, but they continue to be a favored method of seeing the doctor in non-critical situations. Experts agree that while telehealth was gaining a following before 2020, it is now considered an idea that is here to stay. The Teams platform offers an easy and convenient experience for both patients and physicians via Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare.
Patients utilizing the service will be able to:
- Select and schedule on-demand appointments
- Join the virtual waiting room and check-in
- Consult with a provider
Providers utilizing the platform for on-demand scheduling can:
- See and monitor on-demand appointments in a queue view (Microsoft Bookings)
- Collect essential information for virtual appointments (Microsoft Forms)
- Gather triage information and patient responses, and review them during the visit.
- View analytics from virtual appointments to understand vital business insights such as lobby wait time, SMS notification impacts, and appointment duration
Microsoft Teams EHR connector
Microsoft Teams EHR connector facilitates the ability for providers to either launch virtual appointments with patients or consult with other providers in Teams directly from their health record system. (via Cerner) Organizations using Cerner can now integrate virtual appointments into their existing clinical workflows.
The Microsoft Teams EHR connector offers potent integration healthcare abilities, such as:
- scheduling and launching virtual appointments directly from Cerner PowerChart
- invite other medical practitioners to join virtual appointments
- obtain real-time status reports to improve patient care
Doctors extol the improvements and collaboration between platforms, pointing out that Microsoft 365/Teams makes it possible for any patient to consult a doctor or specialist, no matter their location or circumstance.
Managed Services Can Help
These enhancements to the Microsoft 365 and Teams suite of services continue to position the platform as a must-have for medical practitioners and providers. If you are administratively responsible for your practice’s telehealth capabilities, Microsoft Teams can help. However, many medical facilities do not have the time nor the resources to investigate how these new enhancements can be integrated into your workflow.
Managed services companies provide the knowledge base and manpower to augment the IT department at SMBs of all kinds, including healthcare providers. Their deep bench of expertise can benefit your practice by assessing your current workflows, determining if Microsoft 365/Teams will benefit your organization, and helping you to implement the platform into your standard procedures.
Alliance IT is a Sarasota-based managed services and IT consulting firm. Call today to learn more about how Mircosoft 365 can help your company to streamline processes, save money, and thrive in today’s changing marketplace.
